


Gift

by Kittenmommy



Series: Loki and Pepper Potts: Conversations, Drinks, and Other Really Bad Ideas [29]
Category: Marvel Avengers Movies Universe, The Avengers (2012), X-Men (Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Devoted!Hel, Established Relationship, F/M, Hel does what she wants, Injured!Tony, Language, Loki explains stuff, Nick Fury swears sooo much, Ororo actually uses her powers in this one, Reincarnation, Supernatural Elements
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-10-01
Updated: 2012-10-01
Packaged: 2017-11-15 10:17:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,097
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/526195
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kittenmommy/pseuds/Kittenmommy
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Bruce shakes his head.  “This is insanity.”</p><p>“So is taking a Rainbow Bridge to Asgard and partying with a bunch of Norse Gods,” Pepper tells him.  “But we did that last week.  So how is reincarnation any crazier than that?”</p><p>“OK, yeah, you have a point there,” Bruce agrees with a sigh.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Gift

**Author's Note:**

> _The Avengers_ and Ororo Munroe belong to Marvel, and I'm not making any money from this.

Hel finds everyone sitting in a visitors’ lounge off of the ICU.

“Come sit with us,” Pepper invites, patting the sofa next to her. “Your father was just explaining what happened.”

“Which maybe he should _not_ be doing with a civilian in the room,” Fury says, glancing at Sylvia meaningfully.

“She is not – _exactly_ – a civilian,” Loki says quietly.

“Care to explain that statement, Laufeyson?”

“Not at the moment, no.” When no further protests seem to be forthcoming, Loki begins to speak. “Our enemy this afternoon was Amora, the Enchantress. She is of Asgard.”

“Old friend of yours?” Clint asks.

Loki makes a face. 

“Not… exactly.” He sighs. “Among my people, I am… unusual. I am the first – and only – male student who Freyja has ever deigned to teach.”

“Who’s Freyja?” Steve asks.

“She is of the Vanir, and it is from her that I learned the art of _seiðr_ , which is usually only practiced by women.”

“ _Seiðr_?” Natasha repeats, a question in her voice.

“Sorcery,” Loki says. “And I was – and am – quite good… so much so that Amora came to me, desiring to learn _seiðr_ from the only one of Freyja’s students who has ever outstripped her.”

He smiles ruefully.

“Or so she claimed. Later, I learned that Freyja had refused Amora, and so she came to me… and she was _quite_ convincing.”

“Yeah, I bet,” Clint agrees with a smirk.

“Foolishly, I took her as my apprentice… by day in the classroom, and by night in my bedchamber.” He shrugs. “You have seen her; can you truly blame me?”

“Nope,” Fury says.

“Not really, no,” Clint agrees.

Bruce just shrugs.

Steve is frowning.

“I was quite young and very foolish… and I was weary of hearing ‘ _ergi_ ’ whispered behind my back everywhere I went. With Amora sharing my bed, those whispers died down… for a while, anyway.”

“What’s _ergi_?” Pepper asks.

“An insult against one’s manhood and one’s courage… calling both into question.”

“Ah, so _that’s_ why Amora called you those names,” Bruce says, nodding.

“Yes.”

“What names?” Hel asks.

“Let’s see… ‘unman’, ‘coward’, ‘gelding’… did I miss any?” Natasha asks.

“Wow, she was _really_ asking for it!” Sylvia says.

“She was indeed,” Loki agrees. “And she knows firsthand that I am none of those things.”

“You sure aren’t,” Pepper murmurs, grinning. “So that’s when you lost your temper and caused a blizzard?”

Loki sighs. “No. I lost my temper when her little lackey and paramour Skurge the Executioner buried his ax in Stark’s skull.”

“Yeah, that’d do it,” Sylvia says.

“Unfortunately, I was distracted and Amora made her escape... but Skurge was not so fortunate.”

Clint grins. “Yeah, I put an arrow in his eye socket.”

“Make no mistake, he _will_ recover,” Loki says. “But not for a very long time.“

Fury is eyeing Sylvia again. “Remind me why she’s here?”

Before Loki can answer, Doctor Phillips walks into the room.

“Mister Stark is awake,” he tells them without preamble.

“When can we see him?” Pepper asks, already rising to her feet.

“Now. But he’s very weak and tires easily, so you should make it brief and try not to overwhelm him.”

“Why don’t we let Pepper and Hel go?” Bruce suggests. “The rest of us can wait.”

“And Sylvia,” Hel adds.

Loki nods. “Yes. I will explain… certain things once you have gone.”

Hel looks at him. “There is more, Father.”

Loki frowns. “More?”

She speaks to him rapidly and at length in another language, and by the time she’s done Loki is absolutely incredulous.

“Him?” he asks, pointing at Phillips. “Are you serious?” 

“Yes.”

“Imagine… what are the odds?”

Hel smiles. “I’ve no idea. The Norns work in mysterious ways.”

“That they do,” Loki agrees with a sigh.

“And you’re not going to explain _any_ of this to _us_ , are you?” Sylvia asks.

“Not at the moment, no,” Loki agrees.

“Come on,” Phillips says with a sigh. “I’ll take you to see Mister Stark.”

As they walk down the hall, he fills them in on what to expect. “He looks pretty awful now… we had to shave his head, and he’s got an intracranial pressure monitor coming out of his skull.”

“Oh my God,” Pepper says.

“He has significant muscle weakness on the left side of his face and body, and his speech is slurred. And some of the things he’s saying don’t make much sense… for one thing, he keeps calling me ‘Dad’.”

“But he will recover, yes?” Hel asks.

“The next seventy-two hours will be critical,” Phillips says.

“That is not what I asked,” Hel reminds him.

They stop in front of a door. “It’s bad,” he tells her softly. “But it’s really too soon to speculate.” He pushes the door open. “Go ahead.”

Pepper takes Hel’s hand, and they go in together. Sylvia hangs back with Phillips.

“There’s something _really_ strange going on with these people,” she murmurs to him. “There’s some kind of big secret… and I get the funny feeling that it involves _us_.”

He nods. “I know.”

* * *

Pepper and Hel approach Tony’s bed together.

“Oh, Pepper, he looks _terrible_!” Hel whispers.

“I know.” Her voice wavers; she’s trying not to cry. “Oh, God.”

Tony’s head is swathed in bandages, and something snakes out from between them on the right side of his head. _Must be that monitor the doctor was talking about,_ Pepper thinks.

He’s got two IV lines, one in each arm. And there’s another tube snaking out from under the covers and ending in a bag of yellow fluid clipped to the side of the bed. _Catheter,_ Pepper realizes.

Tony’s eyes open when he hears them approach, though his left eyelid droops almost shut.

“Pepper.” His voice is barely a whisper. He smiles with only the right side of his mouth. “Jesuss. I feel like hammered shit.”

“I’m not surprised,” Pepper agrees, secretly horrified at how terrible Tony looks.

“Tony…” Hel begins, and her eyes fill with tears.

“Hey… hey…” Tony whispers. “Dun cry, Hel. I’m gonna be jess fine. Mmm Iron Man, ’member? Ulll be back in akssstion ’fore you know it.”

Hel nods silently, wiping at her cheeks with the back of one hand.

“Ladies, I think that’s enough for now,” Phillips says softly from the doorway.

Pepper nods. 

“We’ll say good night now, Tony,” she says. She bends over to kiss his cheek. “We’ll be back as soon as we can.”

“Rest,” Hel tells him. She bends to kiss his cheek, and changes her mind and kisses him very tenderly on the lips. “Get better.”

“Yeah…” His voice fades out as he slips away again.

After a moment, they leave together.

* * *

“Go home, get some rest,” Phillips advises them. “You can’t do anything for him tonight.”

“I’m not sure I’ll be able to get home,” Sylvia says. “It was really coming down out there.”

Phillips shrugs. “You can sleep in on-call.”

She nods. “I may just do that. I have to call my son, though… he’ll be worried.”

“Ah, yes. You have another child,” Hel says, remembering.

“Yeah, Calvin. My son.” She frowns. “’ _Another_ ’ child?” she repeats, puzzled. “I only have one kid.”

“Oh… yes,” Hel agrees.

Sylvia shakes her head. _What a weird bird_ that _one is,_ she thinks but does not say.

“Come on, Hel,” Pepper says. “Let’s go fill everyone else in.”

“All right.”

When they return to the visitors’ lounge, the first thing they notice is the view through the windows: it’s stopped snowing.

The second thing they notice is the tall, gorgeous black woman with flowing white hair and the skintight black jumpsuit standing in front of Fury.

“Are you going to arrest me now?” she’s asking. “My kind _are_ illegal, after all.”

“Ma’am, I have no fucking idea who you are,” Fury lies through his teeth. “As far as I’m concerned, that blizzard stopped all on its own and I never saw you here… or anywhere else. You flat-out do not fucking exist.”

She exhales a great sigh of relief.

“How’s Tony?” Steve asks.

Pepper and Hel fill everyone in as best they can.

“That sounds… really not good,” Bruce says when they finish.

Pepper sighs. “Yeah, I was afraid you were going to say that.”

Fury rises to his feet. “Come on, people. There’s nothing more we can do here tonight… let’s get some rest so we’re fresh for tomorrow.”

Everyone stands and starts moving toward the door.

“Ororo,” Bruce murmurs. “Would you like to… uh, maybe get a coffee or something?”

She smiles. “Yes, I’d like that.” And then she glances apprehensively at Fury.

“Doctor Banner, I absolutely did not hear that,” Fury says. “Or see that. You understand?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Ma’am, anyone gives you any problem, you tell them to come see _me_. I’ll set the motherfucker straight.”

“Thank you, Director Fury,” she says.

Smiling, Bruce and Ororo leave together.

Loki approaches Pepper and Hel. “Are you truly leaving?” he asks softly.

“I have no intention of leaving Tony’s side,” Hel tells him. 

She gives him a little smile and simply vanishes.

“I’m staying here,” Pepper says.

He nods. “I thought so.”

“Are _you_ leaving?” Pepper asks.

“Of course not.”

“It’s going to be a long night,” Pepper says. “Let’s go down to the cafeteria and get some coffee.” She gives him a look. “And you can explain what’s up with that blonde nurse.”

* * *

_It’s dark and rainy, and the headlights only illuminate a few feet ahead._

_He’s on the phone, not paying attention to where they’re going._

_The phone is huge and chunky and clunky; he has a more streamlined design in mind that he’s going to try implementing at some point in the future._

_“Yeah,” he’s saying. “I want that contract… I don’t care how much you have to undercut them!”_

_Suddenly, he looks up and sees the tree looming ahead._

_“Maria!” he shouts. The brakes screech and he’s in motion and then everything just stops._

“Maria!” Phillips shouts, jerking awake in the darkness of the on-call room.

“Keep it down, willya?” Sylvia mumbles sleepily from the cot above his. “Some of us are tryna _sleep_ up here!”

“Jesus,” Phillips says quietly, breathing hard. “Jesus.”

He lies awake in the darkness for a long time, collecting himself. 

Finally, he gets up. 

He gropes for his white coat, not wanting to put on the light and disturb Sylvia further.

He decides to go check on Stark.

* * *

“Are you _serious_?” Pepper asks, staring at Loki in disbelief.

“Yes. Remarkable, isn’t it?”

“OK,” Bruce says, “I’m really having a hard time with this.”

He and Ororo have joined Pepper and Loki in the cafeteria for coffee.

“Reincarnation is a widespread belief across every culture that I know of,” Ororo says. “There must be a reason for that.”

“So you’re saying you believe this… this… _craziness_ ,” Bruce clarifies.

She shrugs. “I’m certainly not discounting the possibility.”

“What does this mean for Tony?” Pepper asks.

Loki shrugs. “I truly have no idea… this is Hel’s area of expertise, not mine.”

“They need to make amends,” Ororo says. “The three of them. They need to forgive each other… otherwise, _none_ of them will be able to move on. Or so I understand it.”

“Possibly,” Loki agrees.

Bruce shakes his head. “This is insanity.”

“So is taking a Rainbow Bridge to Asgard and partying with a bunch of Norse Gods,” Pepper tells him. “But we did that last week. So how is reincarnation any crazier than that?”

“OK, yeah, you have a point there,” Bruce agrees with a sigh.

* * *

“I’m sorry, Doctor Phillips,” the head night nurse is apologizing. “But trying to keep her out… it’s like trying to bail out the _Titanic_ with a sieve.”

Hel is sitting in the chair by Tony’s bed, holding his hand.

“I’ve escorted her out seven times already,” the nurse continues. “I tell her that visiting hours are over and she needs to leave. She smiles politely and agrees, and lets me put her on an elevator. By the time I get back to the nurses’ station, she’s already back in that chair.” She shrugs. “ _Seven times._ I finally gave up.”

He sighs. “It’s OK, don’t worry about it. She doesn’t seem to be disturbing him.”

“No, and there haven’t been any changes,” the nurse tells him. 

“Well, that’s something, anyway.” He walks into the room. “Hello, Hel.”

“Doctor Phillips,” she says, giving him a tired little smile.

“You’re one determined lady, from what I’ve been hearing.”

“Yes… I fight for what I want.”

“Can’t blame you there.”

“And Tony is definitely worth fighting for.”

He nods. “I’ll tell the nurses to stop trying to chase you out… they have enough to do as it is.”

She grins. “Thank you, Doctor Phillips.”

“Are you people ever going to let me in on the big secret?”

“What secret?” she asks innocently.

“I think you know what I’m talking about.”

“Are you happy in this life, Doctor Phillips?” she asks, sounding very interested in his answer.

“What kind of question is that?”

“You cannot answer a question with a question.”

“Why not?”

She nods. “Yes, you are _quite_ good at this, aren’t you?”

“At what?”

“Avoiding things you do not wish to deal with.”

“You sound like my ex wife.”

“Perhaps she has a point.”

He frowns. “Good night, Hel,” he says, and walks out of the room.

“Wow,” Tony says, startling Hel.

“Tony, you are awake!”

“Sortta… yeah.” He frowns with only one side of his mouth. “I think thass the longesh connfershashun I effer heard’m have that washn’t ’bout businesh.”

“Oh, Tony,” she sighs. She picks up a cup of ice water with a bendy straw in it from the nightstand. “Do you want a drink?”

“Scotch,” he replies without hesitation.

“I’m afraid you’ll have to settle for water.”

“Pussum scotch innut?” he asks hopefully.

She shakes her head. “I do not think that Doctor Phillips would approve.”

“Fuckum.”

“Drink your nice water,” she tells him, maneuvering the straw into his mouth.

He takes a couple of small sips, and then spits out the straw.

“We ever gonna tellum?” Tony asks. “’Bout him’n Sylvia bein’ my mom ’n dad innanother life?”

Hel sighs. “I am not sure that would be wise… or what good would come of it. They probably would not believe it.”

“Yeah… yurr probbly right… probbly think wurrall nuts!”

She laughs. “Probably.”

“Mebbe we _arrall_ nuts.” His eyes slip closed. “Sleep.”

“Yes,” she agrees. She leans over and kisses him softly on the lips. “Sleep, my love.”

She doesn’t hear Phillips when he walks away from where he was standing right outside the doorway of Tony’s room.

* * *

Phillips returns to the on-call room.

Moving as quietly as he can in the darkness, he takes off his white coat and lies down on the bottom cot again. He takes out his phone and brings up Wikipedia on the small screen.

He pulls up the entry for Hel… and after reading that, the entry for Tony Stark.

“That you, Doctor Phillips?” Sylvia’s voice asks from above.

“Yeah, it’s me.”

She’s quiet for a long moment.

“So, who’s Maria?” she finally asks.

He sighs, peering at the information on his phone. 

“I know this is going to sound crazy… but I’m starting to think that maybe _you_ are.”

They are both quiet for the rest of the night.

* * *

Pepper wakes up on a sofa in the visitors’ lounge, her head on Loki’s shoulder. 

“Sleep well?” he murmurs.

She yawns. “Not really, no. You?”

Loki shakes his head.

“What time is it?” Pepper asks.

He shrugs. “No idea.”

She pulls out her phone and looks at the screen. “Seven thirty-five. Let’s go down to the cafeteria and get some breakfast… the others will be here soon.”

“All right.”

On their way out, they stop by to peek into Tony’s room.

They’re both asleep, Tony in his bed and Hel in her chair next to it.

“She is devoted to him,” Loki murmurs.

Pepper nods. “Yeah… and I know what she’s going through right now.”

He puts his arms around her and pulls her close.

“He will recover.”

She looks up at him. “Really? He’s not a god, you know. At least when it was you lying in that hospital bed, I had _that_ hope to keep me going.”

Loki sighs. “He is the Man of Iron… surely he will live up to his name.”

“I hope so, Loki. You don’t know how much I hope so.”

Hel’s eyes open slowly, and she sighs.

“Oh, Father… Pepper…” she says sleepily.

“How is he?” Pepper asks quietly.

Hel shrugs. “He has slept most of the night.”

“Good,” Pepper nods. “Would you like to get some breakfast with us?”

She shakes her head. “I do not wish to leave him.”

“Go,” Tony mumbles. “Eat.”

“You’re awake!” Pepper exclaims.

“Mebbe a little,” Tony agrees.

Loki is staring at him, appalled.

“Stark…”

“Wow, I muss look as bad as I feel, huh Loke?”

Loki quickly recovers himself. “You had quite an injury, Stark. It will be a while before you are your old self again.”

“Liesmith,” Tony whispers. “ _You_ dun even believe _that_ one… dooya?”

Loki says nothing.

“Go ’head, Hel. Goweat somethun. Ulll still be here when yur done… whurr else’m I gonna go?”

“Tony, I do not wish to leave you.”

He smiles with one half of his mouth. “Ulll be fine, Hel. Gotta catchup on muh beauty sleep anyway…” His voice fades as he drifts off again.

Hel sighs and rises to her feet. “All right… but I do not wish to leave him for long.”

Pepper nods. “Yeah… I completely get it.”

* * *

They’re in the cafeteria eating breakfast when the middle-aged man in the white coat finds them.

“Hel,” he says. “Good morning.”

“Doctor Sussman,” she replies, looking surprised. 

“I was hoping I’d see you again,” he admits. “But I didn’t actually _expect_ it!”

“Join us?” Hel invites with a smile.

Pepper frowns. “Who’s this?”

“David Sussman,” the doctor replies, extending his hand.

“Pepper Potts,” she replies, shaking it. She gestures at her companion. “Loki.”

“Doctor Sussman,” he murmurs.

“Please, call me David.” Sussman takes the seat next to Hel. “I’ve been doing some reading. You’re her dad, right?”

“Yes.” He frowns. “How do you know my daughter? Are you one of Stark’s doctors?”

“No… she came to speak to me yesterday about a former patient. A _dead_ former patient.”

Loki’s eyebrows go up, while Pepper looks astonished.

“It seems that not all of the dead are at peace,” he continues.

“No,” Hel agrees sadly. “They are not.”

“There are a lot of those people here, right?”

Hel nods. “I am afraid so, David.”

He leans back in his seat. “What happened to Gwendolyn?”

She smiles. “She has moved on.”

“Where?”

“You are but mortal, David. It is not for you to know.”

He nods. “All right. But the others… the ones who are still here… who maybe don’t even know they’re dead… is there hope for them?”

“There is always hope, David.”

“Look, I know you’re the… uh, the Queen of the Underworld – ”

“Niflheim,” she corrects patiently.

“Right. So you don’t really need, ah, a job.”

She laughs. “Why, David? Are you offering me one?”

“I was thinking… Grief Counselor?”

Pepper raises her eyebrows. “For the grieving families?”

“No. For the deceased.”

“Ah,” Hel says, understanding. She leans back in her seat and studies him appraisingly. “You would have me help them to move on.”

He nods. “Like Gwendolyn.”

She takes a deep breath. “My time is occupied now,” she tells him. “With Tony.”

“I understand,” he says, rising. He reaches into the pocket of his white coat and produces a card. “Call me if you’re ever available. Please?” He hands her his business card.

She looks down at the card in her hand. “I shall consider it.”

“Thanks.” He sighs. “I think you could probably do a lot of good around here.”

“Yes… I probably could.”

“Miss Potts… Mister, ah, Loki. Nice meeting you,” Sussman says.

“Same here,” Pepper agrees, and Loki nods.

“Hel,” he nods at her, and then walks away.

“Well… _that_ was interesting!” Pepper says.

“Yes,” Hel agrees. “And unexpected. I am not accustomed to being accepted, let alone being _valued_.”

“I know, my sweet,” Loki murmurs, looking sad. “It seems that Midgard is a good place for us both.”

Hel takes one final sip of her iced coffee and stands. “I really must return to Tony… I have already been away for too long.”

“He has nurses – ” Loki begins.

“Let her go, Loki,” Pepper says. “I understand _exactly_ how she feels.”

“Yes,” he murmurs, “I suppose you would.”

They’re quiet for a moment, watching Hel walk away.

Finally, Loki comes to his feet. “I must away.”

“What?” She frowns up at him. “Where are you going?”

“I should return to Asgard and tell Thor what has befallen his shield brother.”

“Oh.” That hadn’t even occurred to Pepper. “Can’t you just call him?”

He gives her a look. “I think that this is the sort of news that one ought to deliver in person… don’t you?”

She nods. “Yeah, you’re probably right.” She stands and puts her arms around him. “Come back soon?”

“Yes. I do not plan to be gone long.”

“All right,” she agrees, and kisses him.

She steps back, and he vanishes.

With a sigh, she goes back to the line to get herself another cup of coffee before going back upstairs to wait for news in the ICU visitor’s lounge.

She has a feeling that she’s going to be spending a lot of time there in the future.

* * *

Phillips and Sylvia are sitting together on the small cot in on-call where Phillips had spent the night.

They’re looking at an iPad and discussing what Phillips had overheard outside of Tony’s hospital room the previous night.

“I don’t know, Doctor Phillips,” Sylvia is saying. “This seems so… crazy.”

“I think you can probably call me ‘Freddy’ at this point,” he tells her.

She’s staring down at the picture on the iPad. “And that’s her? That’s Maria Stark?”

He nods. “Yep.” He touches the screen. “And that’s Howard.”

“And you really think that we used to be these people? In another life?”

“Maybe.” He shrugs. “Who knows? But I think that _Stark_ thinks so.”

She nods. “Yeah, that would definitely explain a lot.”

“You know… ever since that day he showed up at my apartment, I haven’t slept well. I kept having dreams that I couldn’t remember. Like last night.”

“You shouted ‘ _Maria!_ ’,” she reminds him.

“Yeah. But I don’t remember what I was dreaming about.”

“It probably wasn’t good.”

He shakes his head. “No, it probably wasn’t.”

She looks from the iPad to Phillips. 

“So, what do we do now?”

He sighs. “I really have no idea.” He catches her gaze and holds it. “I guess we’ll just have to figure it out… together.”

She smiles shyly. “Yeah… I guess so!”

* * *

Everyone’s in the visitors’ lounge when Pepper arrives. They’re all in street clothes, but they don’t look like they’ve gotten any more rest than she has.

Ororo is with Bruce, and Pepper wonders briefly where she’d spent the night… and then dismisses that thought as not only irrelevant, but none of her business.

“Good morning,” she says, and everyone returns her greeting with varying levels of enthusiasm. “Any news?”

Fury shakes his head. “Not yet.”

“I read his chart,” Bruce admits. “I snuck it out of the racks right after AM rounds.”

“And?” Pepper asks.

He sighs. “I kind of wish I _hadn’t_.”

“Oh God.”

“Look, we have to be _optimistic_ ,” Steve tries, but everyone just _looks_ at him and he doesn’t even bother to continue.

Phillips appears in the doorway. “You can see him now, if you want,” he says. “One at a time, though, OK? And try not to tire him out.”

* * *

Pepper sits on the sofa talking with Ororo while the others take turns visiting with Tony.

They all return to the lounge with the same downcast, hopeless expression on their faces… even Steve.

“He _has_ to get better… right?” Steve asks hopefully. “He can’t spend the rest of his life _like that_ , can he?”

Clint sighs, and Natasha says something in Russian.

“We can’t give up on him,” Bruce says. “Even though this looks _really_ bad… there’s still a chance.”

“Do you actually believe that, Bruce?” Natasha asks softly.

“I’m _trying_ to,” he admits.

“Brain injuries don’t _get_ better,” Pepper says softly, remembering what she had been told back in July when Loki was shot.

“Loki did,” Steve points out.

“Loki is a motherfucking _god_ ,” Fury reminds them.

“Yes,” Loki agrees softly, and everyone jumps. “I am. Though I perhaps would not have chosen that particular adjective to describe myself.”

He’s just _appeared_ in the lounge, obviously dressed for Asgard rather than Earth.

“Jesus fucking Christ,” Fury says. “You’re gonna give me a fucking _heart attack_ one day, Laufeyson!”

“So,” Pepper says. She makes room for him on the sofa next to her, but he makes no move to join her. “How did Thor take it?”

“About as I expected,” Loki admits. “Is Stark awake?”

“He was,” Clint says. “I think we all tired him out.”

“Do you think he would mind another visitor?”

“I’m sure he’d love to see you, Loki,” Pepper says.

He nods. “Come with me.” He makes a sweeping gesture. “ _All_ of you.”

* * *

“I can dooit myself, Hel,” Tony is protesting.

The others hang back in the doorway when Loki walks into Tony’s room.

Tony is struggling with a shaking hand to get a spoonful of green _something_ up his mouth.

Before the spoon is even halfway there, Tony’s grip slackens and the spoon drops onto the bed.

“Fuck!”

“And hello to you as well, Stark,” Loki says mildly, earning a droopy-eyed glare.

“Tony, you must eat to regain your strength,” Hel says patiently as she retrieves the dropped spoon. “Please, allow me to help.”

“That does not look at all appetizing,” Loki observes, staring down at the tray of food.

“S’not,” Tony tells him.

“Yes, it certainly does look like it,” Loki agrees, and Tony huffs out a weak snort of laughter.

“Thinkits sumkinda creamed peash,” Tony says. “Or mebbe corn.”

“Tony, it’s _green_ ,” Hel reminds him.

“Really old corn,” Tony amends. “Or carrots… rottennuns.”

Loki laughs.

“Pullup a chair, Loke,” Tony invites. He spies the others, standing close together right inside the doorway. “Ssss’feeding time atthuh zoo.”

Loki finds the other chair and sits. “I have just come from Asgard.”

Hel looks surprised by this.

“Didja bring me summadat mead?” Tony asks hopefully. “Could go fursome mead riinow.”

“That’s the Tony we know and love,” Clint snarks.

“No, Stark,” Loki is saying, “but I _did_ bring you something… something you will probably enjoy a great deal more than that pathetic slop that the twisted sadists down in the cafeteria kitchens have shamelessly attempted to pass off as your lunch.”

Tony huffs more weak laughter at this.

Loki holds up his hand, and a little knife with an emerald-studded golden hilt just _appears_ in it.

“Ssss’nice,” Tony says appreciatively. “Ssss’pretty. I canneven holda spoon now, though. But thanks anyway… ’sss the thought that counts, right?”

“The knife is not the gift,” Loki says, and reaches into a fold in his emerald robes. “This is.” 

He pulls out something round and golden that seems to glow as though lit from within.

“Father!” Hel gasps. “Did you steal that?”

Loki laughs. “Not _this_ time, no.”

“Whattisit?” Tony asks, frowning. “Lookssslike annapple.”

“Yes, Stark,” Loki agrees, and begins cutting up the apple with the knife. The smell when he pierces the fruit’s skin is delicious, and Tony’s mouth waters.

“Smellssso good!”

“And you must eat every bit of it,” Loki says, holding the first slice up to Tony’s lips.

“Nnnooo,” Tony frowns. He tries reaching for the apple slice with a trembling hand. “Ikandooit!” 

“That is patently untrue,” Loki tells him in a tone that brooks no argument. “And this apple is quite precious… I will _not_ have you drop it all over the floor!”

“Awright,” Tony agrees with a sigh. “Hit me!”

Slowly, carefully, Loki feeds him the apple, one slice at a time.

“Was really good,” Tony says with a sigh. He leans back against his pillow. “Got another one?”

Loki laughs softly. “No, Stark. Only one per customer.”

“Loki,” Pepper says quietly. “That apple…”

He turns in his chair and smiles up at her.

“It was from Iðunn’s orchard,” he says, confirming her suspicion.

“The apples of immortality,” Bruce breathes, amazed.

“Eaten on Asgard, yes,” Loki agrees. “Here on Midgard, it will not grant Stark immortality… but it _will_ heal.”

“Seriously?” Tony asks, and his voice is already stronger and clearer.

“Yes, Stark. Seriously.”

“Oh, Father,” Hel whispers, and the tears are running freely down her cheeks. “ _Thank_ you.”

“Thank your uncle,” Loki tells her with a smile.

Tony reaches out and picks up the spoon from the tray. He easily scoops up some of the mystery vegetable and tries it carefully.

“That tastes like _utter shit_!” he exclaims, making a face. “Jesus!”

He glances around. 

“You know, I’m thinking about buying _this_ hospital too, just so I can fire the entire food service staff and gut the cafeteria… maybe put in something _less_ dangerous, like a hazmat storage facility or a containment area for highly volatile radioactive waste. Meanwhile, who wants to order pizza?”

And then, everyone is laughing and talking at once, and Tony is being hugged by a crying Hel and a crying Pepper in a weird kind of three-way hug, and Fury is shaking Loki’s hand and for some reason Ororo Munroe is there too and she and Bruce are hugging, and so are Clint and Natasha, and now Steve is shaking Loki’s hand.

Phillips walks in and just _stops_.

“What…” he finally says.

“Hey, Dad,” Tony calls. “Loki brought me this really cool apple… I guess he stole it from some lady named Iðunn or something, I don’t know.”

“I did not,” Loki protests. “Thor gave it to me!”

“And anyway,” Tony continues, unfazed by this interruption, “my friends and I are hangin’ out and stuff, and we wanna order pizza. Is that OK? We got all our homework done and _everything_!”

Phillips shrugs. “I really don’t know what to say, Mister Stark.”

“I do,” a new voice says, and everyone turns to see Sylvia standing in the doorway. “Tell him _next time_ , he needs to get _Mom’s_ permission before inviting all his friends over to play!” 

FINIS.

**Author's Note:**

> Reference:
> 
> I got the idea for apples that will grant immortality when eaten in their native world, but will only heal when eaten in our world from the book _The Magician's Nephew_ , part of C.S. Lewis's _Chronicles of Narnia_.


End file.
